цирк
by evemiliana
Summary: Micos decides to run away to the circus to escape his crumbling life. But he soon learns that it's more sinister than it appears to be. OC centric: Belize. Dark!circus AU. might be bumped to M.
1. Prologue

Micos came home at 7 o'clock every day, slamming the door behind him. It was just what he did. Just because he looked like he was 12 years old didn't mean he had to act like it, well, most of the time.

He threw his school satchel to the side and walked to the kitchen to get a drink of water. Wiping the sweat from his face, he took out a glass and filled it with water, and took a huge gulp of it. The Belizean sun was unforgiving, constantly shining.

Micos Johnson was 17 years old, with jet black hair that was always naturally spiky and chocolate brown eyes. He was on his last year of secondary learning and was an above average student. He wasn't the smartest (that honor was given to Xiang Li, the Cantonese exchange student) but he had well enough grades to at least be considered by many different colleges.

Micos put the now empty glass in the sink and walked to his room. What he didn't expect was to see his father standing in the way.

Javier Johnson wasn't exactly a tall man, just barely being of average height, but Micos was still intimidated by him at times. He had dark eyes, that seemed almost black with bags under them, and his hair was always messy, standing up on different ends. He normally didn't come home until 9, which was why Micos was so surprised to see him home two hours early.

"and just where have YOU been?" His father asked, his eyes showing no emotion, like usual.

Micos couldn't lie to his father, knowing very well that he could easily see through a lie.

"I was visiting Rita's grave" he answered, holding his ground.

Rita was Micos' older sister. She was 6 years older than Micos and he had pretty much looked up to her. When their mother had died after years of battling cancer, it was Rita who had stepped up and started cooking and cleaning. She had pretty much raised Micos since their father had then started working later and later shifts. Two years ago, she had started dating her childhood friend who originally hailed from Mexico and a year ago, she had gotten pregnant. While Micos was excited for her and the fact that he would be an uncle, their father was furious. He accused her of being a slut and that she wasn't worthy to be his daughter anymore. He had kicked her out. Micos had been devastated.

A week later it was on the news that Rita had been in a horrible car crash, killing her and the baby.

For the past year, Micos went to her grave every day and fixed it up, putting fresh flowers and talking to her. It was the only thing he looked forward to every day. Of course, his father hadn't known about this. At least, not until now.

His father made a face, one of disgust. "That slut? She got what she deserved. You shouldn't be visiting her."

Micos felt his anger bubble up. "At least she was there! She pretty much raised me and took care of me while you were never here!"

His father 's eye twitched. "You know very well I work hard to keep this house by working late shifts!"

"She was your daughter! How could you have just abandoned her when she needed you most?" Micos shot back, changing the subject. When his father hadn't even bothered to give her a funeral, Micos had been furious. The plot that Rita had now was courtesy of their Abuela. The woman had paid for everything. Rita had always been her favorite, the one who acted most like her.

"She stopped being my daughter when she decided to lose her virginity!" his father yelled angrily.

Micos was full of anger. How dare he! He pushed past him to his room and slammed the door.

Micos went over to the drawer where he kept his money. On his desk, his pet lizard was pacing around in his glass aquarium. Micos smiled a bit at him. Pedro was his pet lizard that he had gotten from Rita a year ago. He always made sure to feed him and take care of him. The bright green lizard stuck out his tongue.

Micos went over the aquarium and opened the lid, allowing Pedro to crawl up his arm. The lizard crawled up and up all the way to his head, nestling there. Micos smiled and walked to his money drawer again. It was Friday today, and on Saturdays he would normally leave the house all day. He had about 16 dollars. Micos smiled. He was going to buy a ticket and go to the circus that had come to town tomorrow…

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><p><em><strong>Hola everyone! I know, I should be working on my other things, but this idea has been in my head since August and I need to get it out!<strong>_

_**The title ir Russian for "Circus"., You'll see why that's important later...  
><strong>_

_**Poor Belize is going to go through a LOT of hell in this story…**_

_**Yes, Xiang Li is Hong Kong. I don't think he'll be appearing anymore in this story.**_

_**Yes, his older sister is Guatemala and YES I alluded to Mexico/Guatemala. Belize's Abuela is the Mayan Empire, and his dad is just a random asshole I made up. **_

_**Oh, and 2 Belizean dollars equals about 1 US dollar, so the ticket would probably cost 8 dollars in the US.**_

_**He looks 12 instead of 6 in this story because I thought it would be more realistic ^^**_

_**This is the prologue, which is why it's short. And why there's so many explanations.**_

_**And I must warn you that this might get really gruesome later and might be bumped up to M later. But that only depends.**_

_**So, review por favor ^^**_


	2. the circus

The nest day, Micos got up early and got dressed as fast as he could. He took his money out of his drawer and let Pedro out of his aquarium, letting him crawl up in his hair again. He smiled a bit and walked out of the door. His father had already gone to work, so he didn't have to worry about any confrontations.

At 12 at noon, he walked downtown to the circus. This was its last show, and he wanted to get his ticket. He walked up to the ticket booth, which was being manned by a brunette with green eyes. He looked about 19 years old, and his nametag said "Toris".

"Hello, how may I help you?" he asked cheerfully.

"Hola, I would like one adult ticket for the 1 o'clock show." Micos replied.

A look of confusion passed over Toris' face. _He probably thinks I'm 12 years old._ Micos thought to himself, slightly annoyed.

Toris then shrugged, deciding not to ask his question. "That will be 16 dollars then."

Micos handed Toris his money and got his ticket in exchange. "gracias" he said as he walked to the cirus tent.

The huge tent already looked amazing, even though the performance hadn't even started yet. There were bleachers that encircled the huge center, which had a cage over it. _Probably to make the customers feel safe_ he thought to himself. There was a tightrope, a trapeze, and a step at the middle, probably where the ringmaster would stand. Micos decided to sit at the front row. He wanted to see everything. Pedro popped up from his hair and crawled down his arm, probably wanting to see what his master was doing. Micos trembled in excitement.

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><p>A few minutes later, everyone had crowded into the tent; not an empty seat in sight. Suddenly, the lights went out in the tent, and only one spotlight was shining. In a puff of smoke, a man suddenly appeared.<p>

The first thing Micos noticed was how tall he was. He was easily taller than any person in the tent. He wore a gray trenchcoat that had some different jewels sewed in it. He had a long pink scarf over his neck. He was very pale, a contrast to the many tanned people in the tent. He had platinum blonde hair, and from what Micos could see, violet colored eyes.

"Privyet, ladies and gentlemen" He finally spoke. He had an accent, which Micos guessed was Russian. "I am ringmaster Ivan. This circus that I travel with has been all over the world, so I bring you many exotic things to be amazed at." Ivan smiled. "I give you a chance to escape from your humdrum lives to see things you would not normally see." Micos could have sworn Ivan turned to him and winked at this last statement.

"First, I bring you something that comes from close to home. I found her in the hot rainforests of Nicaragua, taming jaguars, cougars, and ocelots. I give you: Luisa.

The lights then went off again and quickly turned back on just in time to see her walk in. Or rather, a large jaguar walk in with her riding it bareback as four other jaguars walked with it, two on each side. Luisa's skin seemed to be painted, as it was a dark blue with black triangles painted under her eyes. Her long dark brown hair was loose as it fell over her shoulders, down to the long red dress that she wore. She got up from the jaguar and smiled at the audience. She made a small curtsey as she turned around to the jaguar that had carried her, the skirt part of her dress swirling around her. She pet the jaguar, scratching it behind the ears.

"Luisa has spent years training these jaguars to do whatever she wants. Now, she will entertain you with what she has taught them to do" Ivan said, still smiling.

Luisa seemed to whisper something to the one she had ridden, and the jaguar seemed the nod its head. It suddenly ran towards one of the girls that had walked in with a hoop and jumped through the hoop with ease. Two other jaguars understood this message and stepped up on two platforms. Luisa raised her right hand and moved her arm in a snakelike motion. The two other jaguars jumped on two other platforms. Luisa then stopped what she was doing with her right arm and did it with her left arm. The four jaguars stood at attention on their respective platforms. Luisa stopped what she was doing and then clapped her hands. The jaguars stood up at their hind paws, and the fifth jaguar walked through the middle of them.

Luisa then brought her arms together and made a gesture that looked as if to go up in the sky. The four jaguars on platforms then all did a backflip in sync! Micos was amazed that someone who looked so young (Luisa only looked about 19) could command these jaguars to perform!

It went on like this for a bit, with Luisa making hand gestures and the jaguars doing what she wanted. Finally, she turned to the audience and made a small curtsey, letting the audience know she was done. They applauded for her as she walked out of the center of the ring, the jaguars following her.

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><p>The rest of the circus went on like this, with many different acts performing. There was a Latvian boy who juggled with an Estonian boy. There was also a Chinese boy who danced, and many other performances. Micos was a bit sad when the performance was over. Pedro had crawled back into his hair halfway through the show. That's when Micos realized, this was his chance! His father was probably going to keep on with this routine, and Micos was tired of it. He couldn't wait any longer to leave home. He was going to do it now! When almost everyone left, Micos ran up to the ringmaster, who was still there.<p>

"Um, excuse me? May I talk to you?" Micos asked.

Ivan look down at Micos. "hm, why do you need to?" he asked.

Micos fidgeted. "Well, I really liked the show. A-and, I wanted to ask you if I could join."

Ivan raised an eyebrow. "Join my circus?"

Micos nodded "si! I don't have to perform. In fact, I would just be fine if I worked backstage! I'm 17, and I could help out! You don't even have to pay me.

Ivan seemed to be brooding this. "hm, what would you have to offer?"

Micos seemed more determined. "I'll work at any odd jobs you need! I could clean up, help put the tent down-" Micos continued with this.

Suddenly, Pedro popped out of Micos' hair again. Ivan's interest was piqued.

"and who is this?" he asked, observing the lizard.

"This is Pedro! He's my pet lizard. Y-you won't mind, right?" Micos asked.

Ivan smiled. "of course not! You have the job! Just follow me." Ivan walked towards the back, and Micos followed.

Ivan led Micos into a very small tent that was set up. "Just wait here, da?" he said.

Micos walked in. He was so excited! He would get to travel the world and see acts like he had seen every night! While he was silently jumping for joy, he failed to notice someone behind him until he felt a pipe knock him in the head as he fell into unconsciousness.

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><p><em><strong>Cliffhanger~ Here's chapter 2! Yes, Ivan is the ringmaster. It's a bit shorter than the last chapter, but I'm in a hurry. Yes, Luisa is Nicaragua. And yes, she trained jaguars. She's just that awesome.<strong>_

_**Review por favor~~**_


	3. Assimilation

"_This one is a nice one. A very nice one indeed… and now he'll be even nicer, da?"_

Micos started to fall back into consciousness. He couldn't move anything, but he could at least hear what was going on. He also felt restraints on his arms and legs, and he felt cold… so cold…

"_Oh dear, he's starting to awaken. Best to start this process now, da?"_

That voice… Micos tried to pinpoint who it was. His mind was all messed up. But before he could pinpoint whose voice it was, he heard a whirring sound, as if a machine had been turned on.

Suddenly, he felt a great pain rack his body, as if electricity was going through his spine. He wanted to scream, but his mouth wouldn't work. He felt as if his skin was being ripped off, and he could have sworn he felt fresh blood go down his body. He tried to move, but he couldn't because of the restraints.

"_I always love this part. To see them in so much anguish just makes my blood go cold with excitement, da?"_

That damned VOICE! It was mocking him, he knew it! Micos still felt the electricity like feeling, except now if felt like it was attacking his veins instead of just his spinal cord. The pain was now pinpointed in many different places. It was only getting worse. He could now smell the blood, and taste it in his mouth. The metallic taste coupled with its smell and the feel of it on his skin was starting to overwhelm his senses.

"_Aw…. He's starting to lose consciousness again… how sad."_

The voice was right. The pain was starting to subside, and his mind was starting to drift away from him. But he still couldn't pinpoint that voice….

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><p>Micos awoke with a start, panting heavily.<p>

_That sure was some realistic dream…_ He thought to himself. He looked around at his surroundings, surprised to see that he wasn't in his bed, but on the floor of a tent. It was a bit dark, and his tail twitched in nervousness… wait, TAIL?

All sleepiness Micos might have had was jolted away from him as he realized he could move and appendage he knew he didn't see in the shower that morning.

But he felt it. Oh, did he feel it. It was twitching on its own. He looked at his hands, expecting to see the tannish color they were, but instead saw an emerald green.

It didn't end there. He realized that he wasn't wearing his shirt, only wearing the dark blue baggy jeans he had on earlier. From what he saw, his chest and arms were covered in bright green scales. He pulled the legs on his jeans up and saw that they were on his legs too.

It was then that he realized that there was a mirror in the tent. He went up to it, and saw what he really looked like now.

The large chocolate colored eyes he had had before were now a yellowish color, with a slit as the iris. His hair was the same, but he saw that the green scales were on his neck and face as well. He could finally see his tail, looking like a lizard's tail, twitching back and forth. Micos opened his mouth, revealing that his tongue was now forked, like a snake.

Then Micos did what was most natural to him at the moment: he screamed.

He screamed such a bloodcurdling scream that the birds that had been on the roof of the tent flew away as fast as they could.

Micos collapsed onto the ground, shaking in fear at his transformation. He looked like… a lizard… but also human was well.

The flap that served as a door for the tent opened, revealing Ivan in a tan coat instead of the flashier one he had worn earlier. He smiled a creepy smile, one that sent shivers through Micos' spine.

But that didn't stop the newly transformed lizard boy. He sprung up and grabbed at Ivan's coat, his now yellow eyes narrowing dangerously.

"What. The fuck. Happened to me." Micos hissed, his tail going back and forth in anger.

Ivan seemed unimpressed with Micos' cursing of his attempts to be threatening. Instead, he punched Micos in the stomach. Hard.

Micos fell to the ground groaning with a thump, surprised at Ivan's strength.

"It's quite simple, comrade. You are now part of the circus!" Ivan said cheerily. "I needed to make some adjustments with your body in order for you to take part."

Micos tried to get up, but felt something weigh down against him, preventing him from moving from his spot.

"I also had to add my obedience charm so you would not run away." Ivan added. "Basically, you can move on your own, but if I need you, I can have you do whatever I want. Whether it be for you to move, or in this case, not move."

Micos then had a realization. "Wait… where's Pedro?" He said to himself frantically.

Ivan's smile turned more malicious, as if excited about the pain that the next statement would bring. "Well, the process of turning you into partially an animal needed the animal itself to finish the process. You can't get something out of nothing after all~"

Micos' blood turned cold at this statement. All defiance he had had on his face earlier suddenly disappeared into a look of horror. "y-you mean that you…"

"Used your pet lizard as a means to turn you part lizard? Da!" Ivan said, his smile turning even creepier than before. "Your little pet is now inside of you!"

Micos had an even more horrified look. "You. Sick. Fuck." He growled, surprised with how much he was cursing today. But could you really blame him? After all, Ivan really WAS a sick fuck.

Ivan clicked his tongue. "Now now, no need for such vulgar language. I much take you to your cage for you to be broken- I mean trained, so you can perform, da?"

Ivan then took Micos' hand and pulled him out of the tent and to where his new home would be. Despite his mind's protests, Micos' body followed Ivan.

_How the hell did I get dragged into this?_

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><p><em><strong>So… um…. Hi guys…<strong>_

_**I'm sorry I didn't update last week, especially with how excited I was with this chapter!**_

_**But you see…. I got grounded that weekend and I got no computer for the entire time period. Then also, I was busy with my last week of school before Christmas break (No school for two weeks is AWESOME!) because I was singing with my glee club (YES I'm in glee club!) and finishing the last things so I wouldn't have to worry. And also, I AM FIRST PLACE IN MY WHOLE SCHOOL FOR HISTORY BEE! I will be able to compete with different schools (AKA floor their ass) and maybe get the grand prize (50,000 dollars!). I seem so arrogant because history is my favorite (and best) subject and I am REALLY hoping I'll win. This is where being a hetalia fangirl pays off ^^**_

_**I'll try to keep my "update every Sunday" thing going on so you guys don't die of waiting. **_

_**Review por favor~~^^**_

_**Speaking of reviews, I would like to thank The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg for reviewing every chapter so far ^^ you are awesome!**_


	4. Aquaintances

Ivan led Micos to the camp. He could see a bunch of different trailers, each with the names of the people who lived in there. Ivan finally stopped at one trailer, which had the names "Luisa" and "Alejandro" on the door.

"ALEJANDRO! WHAT THE HEL?"

"I'M SORRY! YOU KNOW HOW MY INSTINCTS KICK IN AT WEIRD TIMES"

"I KNOW! BUT THIS IS THE THIRD TIME THIS WEEK YOU'VE RIPPED UP MY BEDSHEETS!"

Ivan's smile quickly became a frown when he heard this dialogue that was coming from in the trailer. He opened the door.

Micos saw a woman with dark brown hair and… -red skin?- tackling a black haired man who had a mane the same color as his hair and whiskers, not to mention cat ears and a tail. The woman (who he assumed was Luisa) was currently strangling the man (who he also guessed was Alejandro) on the floor and banging his head on the floor while the man was trying to get her to stop by grabbing her hands with his. Micos sweatdropped at the scene.

Ivan cleared his throat to get their attention. Both of them immediately stopped what they were doing and stared at Ivan. Luisa quickly got off of Alejandro and stopped strangling him and stood upright while Alejandro did the same thing.

"What was that about?" Ivan asked.

"n-nothing!" both of them said, visibly shaking.

"hm. alright then. I'll just let you off this once, da? anyway, I am here to introduce your new trailer mate! His name is Micos!" Ivan stepped away slightly so both Luisa and Alejandro could take a look at Micos. Micos had his head down in shame. Both Luisa and Alejandro had a look of pity on their faces.

Ivan not seeming to notice, smiled. "You will both tell him what is expected of him, da?" not waiting to hear their responses, he pushes Micos into the trailer, which only ended with Micos faceplanting onto the floor. Ivan then closed the door and left.

Luisa quickly helped Micos up, the latter groaning. "Are you alright?" she asked, he skin turning becoming a light pink. With the blank look Micos gave him, Luisa quickly said "nevermind", her skin turning yellow.

Alejandro rolled his eyes and sat down next to Luisa. "the guy was turned into a part lizard thing, of course he's not alright" he said to Luisa, as if she was an idiot.

"S-Shut up overgrown housecat!" Luisa yelled back, her skin turning red.

"c-can someone please explain to me w-what's happening?" Micos asked in a surprisingly small voice.

Alejandro and Luisa took their attention away from the fight they would've probably had and turned it to him.

"basically, you got scammed into becoming a performance slave to the frigid Russian bastard" Alejandro said.

Luisa glared at Alejandro and quickly showed concern to Micos. "what he MEANS is that life is going to be much different now." She said, her skin turning light pink again. "What Ivan likes to do is entice people with bad lives to join the circus, and then turn them into something in the most painful way possible. Her turns some people into partial animals, like you and Alejandro, while he might turn someone else into something completely different just for his amusement."

Micos tried to let this all sink in. "r-really?"

Luisa nodded.

"Not to mention that if you're turned part animal there's some really annoying side effects" Alejandro added, unsheathing the claws in his right hand. "You get these weird urges from your animal side that you absolutely have to follow, or else you feel like you're going insane."

Luisa nodded. "Hence why Alejandro teared up my sheets. Again." Luisa glared at Alejandro, who only smiled sheepishly.

"Blame the lion side, not me" he said.

Luisa rolled her eyes.

"T-then, what are you?" Micos asked.

"Well, you might've noticed my skin changes color." Micos nodded at this statement. "Well, Ivan decided it would be fun if my skin changed colors depending on my mood." Luisa explained, annoyed.

"So basically, Chiquita is a human mood ring" Alejandro said matter-of-factly.

Luisa eyetwtiched. "I told you not to fucking call me that!" she said, her skin becoming red again.

"and I've told you to make me!" Alejandro shot back smirking. He then was promptly slapped in the face.  
>Just as Alejandro was about to rant at her, Luisa quickly scratched Alejandro behind the ears, like a person would do to a cat. Immediately, Alejandro closed his eyes in happiness and started purring.<p>

While this exchange was going on, Micos took the time to look around at the trailer he would have to call "home". It was rather small, and there weren't many things in it. The walls were an off-white color and there didn't seem to be beds, but sheets and pillows on the floor. The ripped up ones with a bunch of patches Micos guessed were Luisa's. There was an open closet which didn't have that many clothes in there. He noticed that there was a jaguar sleeping in the closet, wait what?"

While Micos was wondering why the hell there was a sleeping jaguar in the closet, Luisa has stopped scratching Alejandro behind the ears. When this stopped, Alejandro realized the humiliating thing he just did and glared at Luisa. "I keep on telling you to stop doing that! Stop stripping me of my manliness~~!"

Luisa just smirked. She then noticed Micos looking at the jaguar. "oh! That's just my pet jaguar Pelucha! She used to be a dog but…" Luisa trailed off.

Micos understood what she meant. Ivan had turned the dog into a jaguar. He finally noticed a full length mirror in the room. He stared at his reflection, still not believing that the person in it was him. He tail twitched. He felt so disgusting…

Micos felt a pair of arms encircle him and he was pulled close to Luisa, who was hugging him. He looked up at her, confused.

"It's okay to cry, you know…" She said softly, stroking his hair. Micos noticed that he had tears brimming in his eyes. Everything still didn't make sense. All he knew was that he was part lizard now, his body still hurt, and this girl was saying that he could cry about it.

So he did.

Micos suddenly felt himself sobbing all over Luisa's shirt, shaking while doing so. Everything was just getting from bad to worse! How did he get wrapped up into this? It was so confusing!

Alejandro didn't say anything while Luisa held Micos while he was crying. He knew exactly what the guy was going through. When he had been turned part lion, he had been so confused and his body hurt for days. Luisa, who had only been changed a few months before him, had helped him get through it too, though he would never admit it. He also knew that Micos was probably asking the same question to himself over and over.

_Why __me__?_

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><p><em><strong>Uh… sorry this took so long ^^; I had a bunch of stuff to do… BUT! I'll try to stay on my once a week updates~<strong>_

_**Review por favor~ **_


	5. Memories

"_You'll get better, right Mama?" a little 4 year old asked._

"_Of course, hijo" a woman with black hair in a braid said, smiling softly. Her dark brown eyes seemed a bit sad, and her face was pale and worn. "The hospital is just trying out this chemotherapy, and I need to stay in the hospital for it. I promise that as soon as I get better, we'll go out for ice cream. Rita can come too, si?" The woman ruffled her 4 year old's spiky black hair. "Don't give your sister and father too much grief while I'm gone, okay?"_

"_Alright Mama!" the 4 year old said, smiling widely. _

_The woman bent down and gave her son a kiss on the forehead, before allowing her worried husband to guide her to the car and drive her away. _

_Over the next few months, the woman seemed to get sicker and sicker. Every day after school, Rita would walk her little brother to the hospital to see their mother. They would stop every day at the store and with Rita's allowance money, they would buy their mother a small stuffed animal. The boy was always so sad when he saw his Mama, but he would nevertheless climb up on his mother's bed and give her a kiss on the cheek. He would then present her the stuffed animal Rita had bought. His mother would smile at both of her children and assure them that she would get better and that then they would get ice cream._

_But then it took the turn for the worst._

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><p><em>One day, when the boy and Rita went to the hospital, the receptionist looked at the children when Rita asked for their mother's room's number.<em>

"_I'm sorry, but we can't allow you to see that patient." She said._

"_Why not?" Rita demanded._

"_I just can't" she said simply._

_Rita sighed. Despite her little brother's protests, she took them home._

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><p><em>The little boy didn't know what was going on. Him and Rita hadn't gone to visit Mama in weeks. Wasn't she missing them right now? Why was Rita crying? Why was Papa avoiding him and Rita? What was going on?<em>

_Finally, after a few days, the boy was told that they would be going somewhere. Rita dressed him up in his nicest clothes and their father drove them to their destination._

_The boy didn't like this place. It felt so dark and sad. It seemed that almost everyone there was crying. What was going on? He kept hold of Rita's hand. Rita sat down on one of the couches in what seemed to be a really big house. He saw that she was crying again. He thought that maybe it was because of Mama. But why was she crying?_

_He crawled up on the couch and took Rita's hand. "Don't cry, Rita. Mama will get better! And then she'll take us out for ice cream! Like she promised!" He said, smiling happily. He wanted to see his big sister smile again._

_But she just seemed to get even sadder when he said this, which made the boy confused. Why was she crying? Mama would get better! He knew it!_

_Rita took a tissue and wiped her eyes. She picked him up and carried him to the other side of the very large room, where their grandmother was. _

"_Abuela? May you please watch Micos for me?" she asked._

"_Of course, preciosa" the woman said, taking the young boy into her arms._

_The boy was rather uncomfortable. He didn't like to be held by anyone other than his mother or Rita. He loved Abuela, he really did, but she wasn't Mama._

_The boy wriggled out of his grandmother's grasp, and toddled off. His grandmother called his name to get him to come back, but he didn't listen. He was determined to find out why Rita was acting so sad._

_He finally came into a large room , where so many others were crying. He was completely confused. He saw a large box on top of an alter in the front of the room. Surrounding it were pictures of his mother. There was a picture of her when she was Rita's age, all the way to her age now. _

_Curious, the boy walked up to the large box. He knew something was in it…_

_Climbing up on the step that was in front of the box, and peered over._

_There in that box, was his mother. Same jet black hair, same facial features that made Rita look so much like her. But her saw so many differences. _

_She didn't have the healthy glow she used to have. Instead, she had a sickly appearance._

_Gaunt cheeks._

_Too thin frame._

_Pale skin._

_The boy looked in horror at his "mother". This couldn't be her! It just couldn't be! He touched her hand. It was ice cold. He didn't see any rise or fall of her chest. Nothing!_

_It was as if she was an empty shell…_

_The 6 year old started wailing. _

"_M-Mama! M-Mama!" he cried, his eyes welling up with tears that streamed down his cheeks._

_With shaky hands, he started trying to wake her up. He grabbed her arm and tried to pull it, to get her to wake up. When it didn't work, he only cried harder. _

_He felt a pair of arms encircle him, pulling him away from his mother. The boy only kicked and screamed, causing a huge commotion._

"_Micos! Calm down! You must respect the funeral home!" a voice hissed in his ear. The boy knew it was his father._

"_B-But, Mama!" he started._

"_is dead! Now shut up and be quiet!" his father hissed again._

_This froze the boy's movement. Dead? B-but that wasn't possible! This was MAMA they were talking about!_

_The boy was finally let go, dropping him to the floor. His eyes welled with tears again. He had found out what death was, but he never knew it would happen to his family!_

_He crawled away from everyone, going to a corner and sobbing. Rita found him and held him in her arms, comforting him the best she could. She knew that he would take it the hardest. After all, he was younger than her, and didn't know how to handle this situation._

_The boy only cried, shaking and not moving away from his big sister's lap._

_What a horrible way to spend your 6__th__ birthday._

* * *

><p><em>16 year old Micos was working on a project he had in school. It was a project he had to do with a partner. Luckily, he had been partnered up with Xiang Li, so they were way ahead of everyone else in his class. He just needed to type up this last portion, and Xiang and him would be finished!<em>

_He heard Rita shut the front door as she came back from her job, going straight to her room. Micos had been a bit worried about his sister lately. She was more tired than usual, and had been a bit moody. He DEFINITELYA knew that a woman's "time of the month" didn't last this long. 3 months? Seriously? Please. He wasn't THAT dense._

_He had also noticed that she was starting to gain a little bit of weight. It wasn't much, but Micos definitely noticed it. He was surprised Papa hadn't yet. But he did go to work at 10 in the morning and come back at 9 in the evening. He was mostly sleeping when he was home._

"_Micos? Could you come here for a moment?" Micos heard Rita ask from her room. It was a good thing their rooms were right next to each other._

"_Sure!" Micos yelled back. He saved his document, closed his laptop, and walked to his sister's room. _

_Rita was still in her McDonald's uniform, and she looked really tired. Rita hated working at McDonalds, but it was the only place Rita could go to after college that accepted part time. It wasn't much money, but she would be able to at least put in some income to help their father._

_Rita sat up from her sprawled out position on her bed, and motioned Micos to come over and sit next to her. Micos did just that._

"_So, what's going on, Rita?" Micos asked. _

"_Well.. you know Tomas, si?" Rita asked._

_Micos gave Rita an "are you kidding me?" look. Of course he knew who Tomas was! Tomas was Rita's Mexican boyfriend of one year, who had been her best friend since she was 10 years old. Micos had always liked him, even calling him "hermano mayor" since that was what pretty much was to Micos. Their father had been a little wary of Tomas due to him being from a different country, but had been too busy to protest much. _

"_Si. I know very well who Tomas is" Micos said. He didn't want to use sarcasm with Rita._

_This was when Rita started to look a little nervous, and looked down at her hands. "W-Well.. I-I don't really know how to say this, but…" _

"_Come on, Rita. If something happened, you can tell me about it" Micos said, smiling sweetly at his older sister. _

_Looking a bit more confident, Rita looked at Micos in the eyes. "W-Well… I-I'm pregnant… and Tomas is the father…"_

_Micos seemed in shock, but then pretty much jumped on Rita, hugging her. "Hermana! That's great! He's really really nice and I'm sure you two will be happy together!" Micos said, smiling widely. "Did you tell him yet?"_

"_Of course I did! He seemed very happy about it." Rita said, smiling. "He said that we didn't have to get married just yet, but that we would work this out. Oh Micos, I'm so happy!"_

"_Si~! And I'll be an uncle!" Micos was excitedly. "I will be that child's best uncle ever! I'll buy them presents, and I'll take them places when they're older! And I'll babysit if you need me to! Do you know if it's a boy or girl yet?"_

_Rita sighed. "We don't know for sure, but I think it'll be a boy. A woman knows these things. Tomas and I agreed on the name Cesar if it's a boy. We're not sure about a girl name yet."_

_Micos hugged Rita again. "What about Papa? Are you going to tell him yet?"_

_Rita sighed again, but this time it was one that you would do if you were tired. "I was going to tell him tonight when he came home. Hopefully he won't be mad…"_

_Micos felt the smile come off of his face. Oh yeah… Their father was very strict about a woman's place and about sex before marriage. He always told Rita to not do anything like this until she was married, which, she obviously did do. He always kept on ingraining it into her head to not do anything like that. But… She was 21. She was an adult, and at least she wasn't like those girls who got pregnant at 15 or 16. And she could always go to college online. Sure it might be a bit harder, but Papa couldn't be THAT mad… _

"_Will you be there for moral support when I tell him?" Rita asked Micos, looking very nervous._

_Micos nodded. "Of course!"_

_Rita smiled, ruffling her little brother's hair. "you're such a good little brother."_

* * *

><p><em>At 9 o'clock sharp, their father came home, trudging through the halls into the master bedroom. After a few minutes, he was out of the room dressed like he was ready for bed, and trudged back to the living room, turning on the tv and sitting in a chair.<em>

_Rita and Micos came out of Rita's room, ready with what they were about to say. They saw down on the couch across from their father._

"_Um… Papa?" Micos started. He got a grunt in reply. "U-Um… Rita needs to tell you something…" _

_Their father paused the tv and looked at Rita and Micos, raising an eyebrow. He had prominent bags under his eyes, and his face looked tired._

"_Rita looked down at her hands. "U-Um.. Papa… I need to tell you that… I-I'm pregnant.." She looked at him, trying to see how he was taking this news._

_Their father's face was emotionless at first, but then his facial expression changed. His eyes hardened, and his hands clenched. "…What did you say?" he asked with an eerily calm voice._

"_S-She said that she was pregnant…" Micos said softly, trying to be careful with what he said in Rita's defense._

"_You… ungrateful… SLUT!" Their father suddenly yelled, standing up. "I tell you time and time again to never let this happen and look what you do! You get pregnant! I'm sure you've slept with your other boyfriends before, huh?"_

_Rita's face twisted into a look of anger. She stood up as well. "For the record, I have NOT slept with any of my other boyfriends! It happened ONE TIME! And at least I didn't get pregnant at 16 or something! I'm 21 years old!"_

"_Pfft, please! You expect me to believe this? You better get rid of that baby!"_

_Rita's face became furious. "NO! You expect me to just get rid of my child? I'm not going to abort it! He deserves to live!"_

"_it would just be a bastard child! A thing from hell! You better get rid of it!"_

"_Never!"_

"_Then you better find another place to live! Because I will not have a slut live in this house!"  
>"FINE THEN!"<em>

_Micos looked in shock as he saw his sister storm out of the living room and come back 20 minutes later with a suitcase. She stormed out of the house, and Micos heard her car turn on and drive away. He turned at his father in anger. "What the hell!"_

"_Don't talk to me like that, boy. You go to your room."_

_Exasperated, Micos stomped out of the living room and to his sister's room. There were so many things in there that she had left behind._

* * *

><p><em>The next day was Saturday, and Micos' father had already left for work when he woke up. He heard the front door open and he looked to see who it was.<em>

_Rita had opened the door with her key and walked in.  
>She was immediately tackled into a hug.<em>

"_Rita! What are you doing here?" Micos asked._

"_I came by to get all of my stuff…" Rita answered._

_Micos looked sad. "So… you're not staying?"_

"_Sadly, no… you know how __**he **__is when it comes to decisions. It's final" Rita said, looking sad as well._

"_Do… you at least have a place to stay?"_

"_Si. I'm moving in with Tomas. He has his own apartment, and I'll help him pay the rent."_

"_Alright…" Micos said, looking upset. "Let me at least help you move out…"_

_Rita sighed. "Okay… "_

_Micos smiled a bit. "I don't care what Father says. I'll be right there with you when your baby is born"_

_Rita smiled. "I'm sure Cesar will be pleased to meet his uncle."_

* * *

><p><em>A week later, Micos was presenting his project with Xiang when one of the teachers, Mr. Fernandez Carriedo, came into the room.<em>

"_Um… Micos?" he said. "Micos Johnson?"_

_Micos looked at him. "Si?"_

"_The Principal __Señor Kirkland would like to see you." He replied. The normally excited Spanish teacher was looking serious for once, his emerald green eyes showing no joy in them. _

_Confused, Micos left the classroom with Mr. Fernandez Carriedo. After thanking him, Micos walked into the principal's office. _

_Mr. Kirkland was originally from England, and had sandy blond hair and green eyes. He also had really thick eyebrows, and was considered insane by the other students in the school. Micos didn't really mind his odd appearance and behavior, however. In fact, he thought it made him more approachable._

"_Sit down Micos" Mr. Kirkland said in his thick English accent._

_After sitting down, Mr. Kirkland started talking again. "Micos, there's no easy way to say this… but… your sister Rita… has died in a car accident."_

_Micos froze. No… there was no way…_

"_Y-You're lying…" Micos said, his voice quivering. "Y-You're just trying to play a joke on me. W-Well it's not funny!"_

_Mr. Kirkland sighed. "Micos… I know how much you love your sister and how hard it is to hear this, but your sister was in a horrible car accident and died instantly."_

_Micos was shaking his head now furiously, tears welling up in his eyes. "N-No! she can't be dead! S-She was going to have a baby!"_

_Mr. Kirkland's eyes shone with pity. He wished that he had had this kind of relationship with his siblings. "Come on, lad… chin up. Here… It is almost time for school to end anyway, so how about you leave school early, yes?"_

_Micos was still trying to fathom what was going on. He needed to see his sister! He needed for her to laugh and say how silly an idea it was that she died. He needed her to say that Mr. Kirkland was just pulling his leg and that she was healthy as ever. But deep down, he knew that this wouldn't happen. That his beloved sister had… died…_

_NO!_

* * *

><p>Micos sat up from his sheets, feeling clammy, and he felt like he was in a cold sweat. He looked next to him and saw that his tail had broken off! And it was still twitching quickly, as if it was still alive and a part of him!<p>

Micos screamed and jumped up from his sheets, feeling disgusted and disturbed.

"Micos! What's going on!"

"W-What? What the hell?"

Micos felt himself being hugged tightly yet comfortingly by a female form. He realized that it was just Luisa. Alejandro had been woken up from sleep and was a little disoriented.

"Micos… tell me what happened…" Luisa said soothingly while stroking his hair.

"M-My t-tail… i-it fell off!" Micos stammered, feeling so disgusted.

"Sweetie… that's natural… When a lizard gets scared, their tail falls off and it twitches so that predators get distracted.." Luisa said softly, still holding him.

"O-Oh…" Micos could only say, feeling like an idiot. Of course that happened! He should have known that.

Micos saw Alejandro stalk up to his dismembered tail on all fours, and sniffing it.

"Alejandro. Stop that. That's disgusting." Luisa deadpanned.

Alejandro suddenly realized what he was doing and got up on two legs again, creeping away from the tail, ashamed of himself. "Sorry…that was just my Lion instincts kicking in again…"

Luisa sighed, before hugging Micos again. "But your tail doesn't just fall off. What happened?"

Micos brought his hand up to his cheek, and felt a wetness on them. It seemed that he had been crying in his sleep. "I-It's nothing… just… remembering things…"

"Ah, I see what you mean." Luisa said softly. Micos couldn't see what color her skin was right now, because of how dark it was in the trailer.

Luisa continued. "it happens to everyone here. We all seem to have had something happen to us that still haunts up. The night after Ivan transforms you, you get nightmares about it. It happens to everyone…" She hugged him tighter, still trying to be as comforting as she could.

"W-Will my tail grow back?" Micos asked, trying to change the subject. Just thinking about what happened in his dreams, or memories, was too painful for him to think about right now.

"Si. It will grow back in about a day, That's the upside of being part lizard, I guess…" Luisa stated.

Micos nodded. He saw Pelucha come out of the closet she was sleeping in and pad over to where Luisa and him were. She laid down next to Ema, curling into a ball.

Luisa pet Pelucha and then set Micos down next to her.

"Don't worry. I've found that Pelucha is really good for comfort when bad memories come up." Luisa said when she saw Micos' confusion.

Micos nodded, getting tired again. He laid down, leaning against Pelucha. She really was soft…

He closed his eyes and started falling asleep, hoping that he would dream good memories this time…

* * *

><p><em><strong>Uh… hi guys… *hides behind a chair*<strong>_

_**I… was trying to find something to write… and also, I was just being lazy. I'm sorry for not updating in so long! DX**_

_**So… consider this a President's Day present. And for those of you who don't live in a country that celebrates President's day, Happy Monday! (Or Tuesday, depending on which part of the world you live in). **_

_**So… anyone else want to murder me for putting Micos through this pain? *raises hand* yeah…**_

_**So… I am really against abortion… just a thought…**_

_**And Cesar is Chiapas, who is Guatemala and Mexico's kid. Sadly, he died with Rita…**_

_**God, I feel like an ass.**_

_**And Tomas is Mexico.**_

_**So… review please?**_


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